Washington, D.C, May 1, 2025: The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has introduced LEED v5, the latest version of its globally recognized green building certification program. Building on a 25-year legacy, LEED v5 offers an updated framework designed to address urgent challenges in climate, health, and community resilience, while providing streamlined tools for building teams and owners to improve performance and transparency.
“LEED v5 raises the bar, further defining and evolving best practices and giving stakeholders across the building industry clear pathways to address today’s challenges to our health, climate, and communities,” said Peter Templeton, President and CEO of USGBC.
Developed with input from thousands of green building professionals worldwide, LEED v5 is centered on three core areas: decarbonization, human and ecological health, and resilience. It introduces comprehensive strategies across the building lifecycle to significantly reduce carbon emissions—including those related to building operations, embodied carbon, refrigerants, and transportation. All LEED v5 projects are required to project their operational carbon footprint and prepare a long-term decarbonization strategy.
The rating system also emphasizes occupant well-being through quality of life credits, reflecting the rising global demand for healthy, transparent, and sustainable indoor environments.
Climate resilience is a major focus in LEED v5. Each project must conduct a climate resilience assessment to identify hazards, reduce vulnerabilities, and ensure business continuity. These assessments support ecosystem restoration and risk mitigation, contributing to safer, more economically secure communities.
LEED certification continues to deliver measurable value. LEED buildings typically achieve 21.4% higher average market sales prices, 11% higher rent rates, and more than 20% reductions in energy, water, and waste use. Additionally, such environments support healthier and more productive occupants.
“LEED v5 provides the best practices and accountability to drive performance across all these dimensions,” said Sarah Zaleski, Chief Products Officer, USGBC. “It delivers tangible benefits to building owners and their stakeholders.”
Each LEED v5-certified project receives a detailed impact report for communicating performance to stakeholders. A newly introduced Project Priorities category enables customization based on regional needs and market-specific goals. The program maintains its third-party verification process to ensure transparency and accountability.
“LEED v5 represents a bold step forward in transforming the built environment,” said Grace Kwok, Chief Sustainability Strategist, AEC Capital Limited. “With ICC in Asia as the first LEED v5 project, we’re proud to help set a new benchmark for green innovation.”
LEED v5 registration is now open for new construction, interior, and existing commercial building projects through the USGBC platform.
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